The Summer of A Lifetime
by PuckleberryFinn123
Summary: Puck and Rachel had a whirlwind year of ups and downs, so spending all summer together will make everything better right? Wrong. The sequel to my first story "The Dare."
1. A Summer Surprise

"So what'd you think Finn meant when he said he'd see us this summer?" Rachel asked after changing out of her prom dress and into her pajamas.

"Maybe he'll come to visit you this summer." Puck laid back and put his arms behind his head.

"Maybe, I'm just glad that Karofsky's gone. I wonder what happened though." Rachel snuggled into Puck's arms.

"I heard he transferred for personal reasons." Puck air-quoted the words 'personal reasons.'

"Well whatever, I don't care. I'm just glad that he can't hurt me anymore." She laid her head against his while he stroked the back of her head.

"I'm glad about that too," he said planting a kiss on her forehead.

"All I know is I can't wait until tomorrow. A whole summer with you, boy I just hope I don't get sick of you," she playfully shoved him.

"Too bad, you're stuck with me for a very long time. Even if you get completely sick of me, I'm not going anywhere." Rachel just laughed. He kissed the top of her head one more time before turning off the lamp and falling asleep.

Rachel woke up feeling excitement, happiness, and about any other good emotion a human could possibly feel. Since prom yesterday, she felt better about everything. _Noah was right; prom did make everything good, even if it was just for a little while. _She knew it wouldn't last forever, but she hoped that it would last at least for a little while. She gently shook Puck who was lying awake next to her. He groaned and rolled over so that he was hugging her.

"We've gotta get going in a little bit." She kissed his forehead.

"I know, just let me lay here a little while longer," he said gripping her tighter. She leaned her forehead against his.

"Fine, but only for a few more minutes, I want to be ready by noon." Puck silently rolled his eyes and let out a laugh.

"Calm down babe, it's only 7:00. You've got plenty of time." After lying down for a little while longer, Rachel insisted they get packing. So Puck unwillingly rolled out of bed and obliged to Rachel's wishes. He threw some stuff into his 2 suitcases and sat down on Rachel's bed.

"If I'd of known you were this messy," she teased.

"It's packed right? That's all you asked for; you didn't say it had to be packed neatly." He got up to tickle her sides.

"Don't try to distract me, because it won't work" she said breathless from laughing so hard.

"I know what will." He spun her around to face him before laying a kiss onto her lips. She got into it before realizing that that was the distraction.

"Oh you're good, but you'll have to do better than that," she said throwing a crumpled up shirt at him. A few hours later, when they were finished preparing everything for their trip, Puck returned home to say goodbye to his family for the summer.

"You better be good okay?" said Kathleen with a few tears in her eyes.

"Mom, I'm just going for the summer, I'll be back," he assured her.

"I know, but next year you're going to be graduating from high school and I'll have to deal with you leaving all over again." She grabbed her son and pulled him into a hug.

"Mom, mom," he tried to let go, but she held onto him tight. Just then, Stacy came bouncing down the stairs.

"Bye Puck," she said hugging his leg.

"Bye Stace." He patted her back.

"I'm going to miss you," Kathleen said releasing her son.

"You're gonna miss me too, aren't you kid?" He asked his little sister.

"Nope, I get to go in your room all summer," she smiled proudly.

"Hey, my room's off limits," he laughed.

"We'll see," she sing-songed. She raced back up the stairs.

"Well I better get going; we've got to leave by 12." He said goodbye one more time to his mother before walking back over to Rachel's house. When he got there, Rachel already had their suitcases all packed and she was waiting in the car.

"Baby, you sure move fast." He couldn't help but shake his head at the sight.

"It's better to be early than late," she smiled. Puck climbed into the backseat to join Rachel.

"This summer's going to be amazing."

"I really hope so. I hope nothing messes this up. I think this will actually be good for us." She reached up to kiss his jaw line and then leaned her head against the crook of his neck as her fathers piled into the car and pulled off.

"We're here," Rachel excitedly threw her bags onto her hotel bed and took in her surroundings.

"What do you want to do first?" Puck asked. Her parents were sharing a room and her and Puck would be sharing a room, but were ordered to sleep on separate beds.

"Well my meeting's not until 7, so we have two hours. We could go get something to eat, I'm pretty hungry," she suggested.

"Sounds great." They walked around town for a while, looking at the sights, trying to find a restaurant to eat at. They agreed on Connie's Pizza Inc., which they thought was the most delicious pizza they ever tasted. They took pictures (since Rachel insisted on documenting their every move so she could remember the summer of her life) at almost every stop. Once they finally found their way back to the hotel, it was already time for Rachel's interview. Puck said he would stay at the hotel until she was finished, but she wanted him there. So he drove her there and waited outside in the car.

"Why hello, you must be Rachel Berry," said a tall, gangly, brunette lady. She peeked over her glasses to look at Rachel before going back about her business.

"Um yes, I'm supposed to meet with Kaya Vega." Rachel tried to pronounce the name on the card in her hand.

"That would be me. Sit down please." She motioned for Rachel to sit at the chair in front of her desk.

"So here's how it's going to work," She said getting down to business right away. "For the first few weeks, you will be practicing with the rest of the cast; rehearsing your lines and making sure every kink is worked out in time for the show. June 21st is opening night, so if you can't be prepared by then, we're going to have to ask you to leave. Can you handle that?" Rachel processed Kaya's words and took them in.

"Yes ma'am," she said eagerly.

"Great, speaking of the cast, your lead male is right over there. Get to know him, learn to like him, because your chemistry has to look real, not rehearsed. So I suggest spending time together when you're not rehearsing." Kaya extended her arm; signaling Rachel to turn around. When Rachel turned around, she came face to face with her 'Melchior.' Her eyes suddenly grew wide with shock.

"Finn?" _So that's what he meant by 'I'll see you this summer.' _

"Oh hey, Rachel," he smiled.

"Oh so you two do know each other? Well this worked out even better than I expected. Don't forget; chemistry is everything." As she walked away, all that could be heard was the clicking of her heels against the black marble floor.

"Not to be rude or anything, but what are you doing here?" she asked puzzled.

"Well I remembered you talking about how you were offered the part of Wendla in the summer production of Spring Awakening and how they were still looking for Melchior. So I called them up and sent in an audition tape. They were impressed and asked me to come audition in person today with a bunch of other people. They liked what I did, so I got the job." Rachel wasn't sure what to make of this. _I guess I should be happy that I get to kiss a friend and it won't be as awkward as kissing a stranger. We already have the chemistry thing down, so I guess this is a good thing. _But she still wasn't sure. What if Finn hadn't gotten over his feelings for her? This summer could only make his feelings grow stronger, which wasn't a good thing at all. Rachel stayed silent for a little while before figuring out what to say.

"What made you want to be in Spring Awakening?" She asked casually.

"Well I figured it'd look good on my college applications. If I want to get a performing arts scholarship and get into a good college, I've got to start doing something. This is a really amazing opportunity, who wouldn't want to be here?" She still wasn't sure what to make of everything. She was confused and excited all at the same time.

"Who are you here with?"

"My mom," he said nonchalantly.

"Oh, cool. Well I'm, very glad to be working with you this summer." She awkwardly gave Finn a hug.

"Thanks Rachel. I'm gonna go find my mom and tell her the good news, see you tomorrow." He smirked eagerly before walking away.

This should be an interesting summer, Rachel thought to herself before walking back to the car.


	2. Chemistry

"So how'd it go in there?" Puck asked Rachel as she got back into the car.

"We start rehearsals tomorrow," she said excitedly.

"Well I'm happy for you baby, and I'm sure you're gonna be great. I'll be there opening night, cheering you on." He gave her a peck on the cheek before pulling off.

* * *

So the next day Rachel walked into rehearsals with a positive attitude. _This could work. Finn's probably over me anyway, so everything's gonna be fine. _

"Well good morning." Finn walked up to Rachel with two cups of coffee in his hand.

"How are you this morning Finn?"

"I'm fine, thank you." He reached out and handed Rachel one of the cups. "Here you go, figured you could use a little pick me up before we start rehearsing.

"Why thank you Finn, that's very generous of you." She smiled at him as she accepted the coffee.

"So how do you feel? Are you ready to get the summer started?" Finn sat down next to Rachel at the edge of the stage.

"I'm thrilled. I can't wait until everyone sees it, although I have to admit, I am a little worried. If I'm not ready by opening night, then it's over for me," she admitted.

"Rachel, you're the most talented person I know. You'll be fine. Besides, you were in the production for two months; you probably know every single line without having to look at a script," he assured her.

"Thanks Finn. " They exchanged a smile.

"See, that's the kind of chemistry I'm looking for." Kaya interrupted. They awkwardly broke their eye contact and stood up.

"I uh, guess we better get started." Rachel put her cup of coffee down and walked onstage to start rehearsing.

"Okay, so we're gonna start at "The Mirror-Blue Night." Finn, boys, go ahead." Kaya directed Finn and the other cast members on where to stand and they began to sing.

_Flip on a switch and everything's fine _

_No more lips, no more tongue, no more ears, no more eyes_

_The naked blue angel, who peers through the blinds_

_Disappears in the gloom of the mirror-blue night _

_But there's nowhere to hide from these bones, from my mind_

_It's broken inside; I'm a man and a child _

_I'm at home with a ghost, who got left in the cold_

_Who knocks at my peace, with no keys to my soul _

_And the whispers of fear, the chill up the spine_

_Will steal away too, with a flick of the light _

_The minute you do it, with fingers so blind _

_You remove every bit of the blue from your mind_

_But there's nowhere to hide from the ghost in my mind_

_It's cold in these bones of a man and a child _

_And there's no one who knows, and there's nowhere to go_

_There's no one to see who can see to my soul_

Once the boys were finished, they received approval from Kaya.

"Excellent!" She clapped. "Now Rachel, Finn, your scene is next." The next scene was an intense one between Wendla and Melchior. When Kaya called action, Wendla was supposed to find Melchior in a hayloft during a storm. They talk for a while and Wendla gives Melchior his journal back. They kiss and experience sex for the first time. The kiss started slow at first, with Wendla objecting, but eventually giving in. For Rachel, that part was sort of real. She didn't want to kiss Finn, but she had to give in. The chemistry was very clear to everyone. There was no hiding a special something between not only the characters, but also the costars. When they pulled back, they both sat there staring at each other.

"That's _exactly _what I'm hoping to see opening night. I want just as much passion, just as much intensity, and just as much authenticity. If I didn't know any better, you two could pass off for a real couple." Finn smiled at the thought but Rachel felt uncomfortable.

"Yeah, well I have a boyfriend."

"Interesting," Kaya said, not really paying attention to what Rachel just said.

"It's just acting, got to make it look real right?" Rachel tried to defend herself.

"Mhm," said Kaya before walking away. Rachel let out a sigh.

"Geez Rach, why are you so worked up? Loosen up." He gently shook her by the shoulders.

"Me, worked up? Naw, I'm fine, everything's fine, you're fine, we're all fine," she said nervously. Finn shook his head and laughed.

"Yeah, you're definitely not worked up," he said sarcastically.

"Okay, so maybe I am a little worked up, I've just got a lot of stuff going on."

"Wanna talk about it?"

"Oh um, you wouldn't understand," she said quietly.

"Try me, you never know."

"Well I'm just worried about the play and about Noah and…" Finn stopped Rachel short.

"What about Puck? Did you guys have a fight or something?"

"No no, nothing like that, Noah's been amazing and so supportive, and I don't know what I'd without him." Finn had a look of disappointment on his face, and Rachel noticed it.

"So then what's wrong?" Finn asked.

"I, I can't tell you."

"Rachel, I'm one of your best friends you can tell me anything," he said sweetly.

"I'm pregnant," she admitted after a little hesitation. Finn stayed silent at first.

"Puck's?" Rachel shook her head. "Does he know?"

"He knows that I'm pregnant but he doesn't know it's his. I thought I got pregnant by Karofsky, but then I started thinking. The day I found out I was pregnant was the day after he raped me. It's not logical that it would be Karofsky's." Rachel seemed so stressed out and all Finn wanted to do was help her. "I'm sort of glad that it's Noah's, but I don't want to put him through that all over again." Suddenly Finn seemed angry.

"What the hell is wrong with him? First he gets Quinn pregnant and now you? Doesn't he know how to keep it in his pants?!" Finn started pacing back and forth. Rachel tried to calm him down.

"Finn this wasn't just his fault and neither was what happened with Quinn. We were both aware of what we were doing with him." Finn continued to talk.

"You guys should have been more careful!"

"We were. I was on birth control and he used a condom, but sometimes that isn't always effective. Wait, what's with the lecture? I shouldn't have to explain my sex life to you," said an annoyed Rachel.

"You're right. I just thought you'd want to confide in me since I thought we were friends!"

"We _are_ friends, but you don't need to know every detail about my life. You don't tell me every detail about yours and I'm perfectly fine with that." Rachel rolled her eyes and walked away.

"He'll just hurt you again. You're just a toy to him. He'll use you until he gets bored and then he'll find somebody else." He ran after Rachel.

"You don't know the first thing about Noah or my relationship with him so don't act like you do. And what's with you today, you're sounding like a jealous ex-boyfriend or something." If Finn thought she was worked up before, he hadn't seen anything.

"Fine, you're right. I'm sorry okay, can we just forget about this?" He seemed to cool down a little now.

"You expect me to just forget everything you said? Noah's my boyfriend Finn, and I don't appreciate the things you said about him." Rachel also seemed a little calmer.

"I'm sorry about the things I said. So can we just forget everything and go get something to eat? All that fighting made me pretty hungry." He patted his stomach and Rachel couldn't help but smile.

"Fine," she playfully rolled her eyes.

* * *

"So are you going to tell Puck that the kid is actually his?" Finn asked Rachel as they walked around outside.

"In due time, I just really want to figure out what I'm gonna do without anyone forcing me to make a decision, although I know he wouldn't ever do that," Rachel said after taking a bite of her fries.

"Do your father's know?"

"Not yet, I'm gonna tell them soon. Like I said, I just need time."

"I'm sorry about what happened earlier. I don't know what came over me. It's just when you told me that, I freaked. I really care about you Rachel and I hate seeing you get hurt. You've gone through so much and I don't think it's fair to you. But no matter what, I'm here for you." Finn stopped walking and turned to look at Rachel.

"That's very sweet of you Finn and I appreciate that very much." She looked up at him. She couldn't quite make out the expression on his face. It was a cross between hope and maybe hurt? She found herself just gazing at him. He started leaning in closer. She didn't lean in, but she didn't back away either. Just as their faces were an inch apart, he pulled back and laughed.

"I'm just kidding, but it looks like you totally wanted to kiss me," he teased her.

"Pfft, never in a million years Hudson, but you probably wanted to kiss me." She softly nudged his shoulder.

"I can't argue with that." She thought he was joking but there were no signs that made it apparent.

"So what about you and Quinn?" she changed the subject. "Do you think she'll come to visit you this summer?"

"What about us? We've been over for a while now. And I don't know why she would visit me, we're not together anymore." He seemed a little testy when talking about Quinn.

"I remember how in love you were with her, that just doesn't go away," Rachel said carefully. She didn't want to make him go off like he did earlier. While Rachel did want to see them back together for their happiness, she also thought it would make her whole situation easier if he wasn't single.

"I did, and I still do, it's just that after finding out it was Puck's baby, everything changed for me. I got over it, but there was still something inside of me that made me mad every time I would see her. Everytime she kissed me I thought about how she lied to me all of those times and it hurt. I didn't feel the same way about her like I used to anymore and I was tired of forcing myself to, so I just gave up. Besides, she doesn't get me like you do Rachel." Rachel's eyes widened at that thought.

"Finn," she started sympathetically.

"No, let me finish. Rachel, you're amazing. You don't get frustrated if it takes me a while to figure something out, you encourage me instead of beating me down, your forgive me even after everything that I've put you through and I don't deserve it. You're beautiful and there aren't many girls out there like you. The truth is I didn't come out here just for the experience. I came out here for you. I couldn't just sit back and let you spend a whole summer falling even more in love with Puck. And maybe that's a little selfish, but I can't stop thinking about you. I had to see if there was ever a chance we could be anything more than friends." Rachel didn't know how to react to the admission that Finn had just made. She stayed silent for at least a good 5 minutes. "But maybe coming out here was a mistake? Maybe I should just leave…" Rachel interrupted him.

"Don't say that," she said grabbing his arm.

"Tell me that it wasn't a mistake? Tell me that I'm not just making an idiot out of myself by thinking that there's something more here?" Rachel was speechless. "Exactly. I know you feel something. Before you'd always tell me 'I'm in love with Noah' or that you don't feel anything, but now you're not denying anything I just said. You know what I think? I think you want to be with me too, you just don't want to admit it. Because if you do admit it, then you'll lose Puck and you don't want that to happen because you can't trust me." Rachel was going to interject, but she let Finn finish his thought. "I've hurt you before," Rachel stopped him right there.

"So has Noah."

"But you believe he won't do it again, whereas you're not sure about me. You want to be with me too but you'd rather stick with somebody who you don't think will hurt you again over somebody you think will." _He's not right is he? No, of course he's not. I love Noah, that's why I'm with him. He's supportive and treats me right and he's everything I could ask for. I feel comfortable with him, why would I want to change that? _

Rachel noticed that Finn started walking away, so she caught up to him.

"I can't do this to Noah; it's not fair to him. He's been here for me through everything and he needs me. I can't just give up on him. I'd feel like a terrible person for hurting him."

"That wasn't exactly a rejection. Why don't you deny everything I just said and then I'll believe you." He stood, staring at Rachel with his arms laying across his chest.

"Finn, please don't make me choose because you won't like my choice." _Rachel why can't you just tell him that you don't have feelings for him and get this over with; that would solve everything. _

"Since you're too much of a coward to actually admit it, then I think it's best if I leave. Josh can take over as my understudy and that would be the best. Would you want that?" Rachel knew Finn really didn't want to leave; he was just doing it to make everything easier.

"I don't want you to leave," she said quietly.

"I can't be here and listen to you talk about Puck and how much you say you're in love with him and I definitely can't be here and _watch _you be with somebody else. It hurts too much Rachel." Before giving Rachel time to gather her thoughts and say anything else, he walked away leaving her standing on the sidewalk dazed and confused


	3. Just So You Know

**A/N: Haven't done one in a long time, so I figured it's time for another disclaimer. I don't own any of the songs, characters, anything from Glee. Songs in this chapter: "Let Me Love You by Mario." "Just So You Know" by Jesse McCartney, "You Belong With Me" Taylor Swift, "That Should Be Me," By Justin Bieber, "You're Beautiful," By James Blunt, and "Hands Down" By Dashboard Confessional. Again, thanks for the support on my story. You guys are truly the best!**

After a long night of hardly any sleep, Rachel walked into the auditorium the next morning still as confused as the night before. As she signed her name on the attendance sheet, she noticed a piece of paper with her name on it tacked to the bulletin board. She walked over and opened it up.

_You should let me love you _

_Let me be the one to give you everything you want and need_

_Baby good love and protection _

_Make me your selection_

_Show you the way love's supposed to be _

_Baby you should let me love you, love you, love you_

_You deserve better girl _

_We should be together girl _

_With me and you it's whatever girl, hey! _

_So can we make this thing ours? _

It was a note with song lyrics on it? _He can't do that; that's mine and Noah's thing. _Although there wasn't a name on the note, Rachel had a good guess as to who wrote it. She threw her stuff in her locker and ran off to find Finn.

"Finn, you have to stop!" She demanded once she found him sitting in the auditorium.

"So I see you got my note," he said coolly.

"I appreciate all the kindness and I thank you for promising to be here for me, but I'm in a relationship with Noah, please leave me alone. We still have to work together, so I want us to just put everything behind us and go back to being friends." She knew they couldn't stay mad at each other because they still had to be professional and they had a job to get done.

"That won't work for me. I can't just be friends with you." He stood up.

"It will have to!" Rachel didn't get time to say much. Finn walked right up to her, grabbed the back of her head, and forced her lips into a kiss. She tried to back away at first, but stopped resisting shortly after. When he pulled away, he still had a firm grip on her.

"If you can honestly tell me you felt nothing after that kiss, I promise I will leave you alone and go back to a strictly professional relationship." Just as Rachel was about to answer, Puck walked in.

"Hey. What's going on here?" He asked with a puzzled look on his face. "Finn, what are you doing here?" He asked suspiciously.

"He uh, he's the male lead for Spring Awakening." Rachel removed Finn's hand from the back of her head and walked over to Puck.

"Oh that's cool. Why didn't you tell me? We all could've hung out together." He grabbed Rachel's waist.

"I don't know, I thought you'd find me kissing another guy uncomfortable."

"It's just acting right? You've gotta do what you gotta do. I understand that."

"I love you." She leaned in and kissed him.

"I've got to go. Tell Kaya that I won't be able to make it in today." Finn left Rachel and Puck.

"I'll be right back, I've gotta go get him. Kaya won't be too thrilled with him leaving," Rachel said to Puck.

"Why is he leaving anyway?" Puck wondered.

"I honestly don't know, but just wait right there I'll be back." That was a lie right there.

"No, it's fine. I've got to go anyway, but I'll see you back at the hotel?" He gave her another quick kiss before heading out the door.

"Finn would you come back here please," she said once Puck was gone.

"Did you do that on purpose?" He said angrily.

"Finn, he's my boyfriend, that's usually how people who are dating greet each other," Rachel sighed loudly.

"You never answered my question."

"Okay I'm sorry, what was your question?" Now it was Rachel's turn to cross her arms.

"Did you feel something when I kissed you?" Finn asked seriously.

"Finn," she started.

"I don't want any excuses, just yes or no." Rachel shut her eyes tightly thinking that maybe this was just some horrible horrible dream and it would all disappear very soon. She opened her eyes and Finn was still standing there waiting for an answer. She took a deep breath before answering him.

"I thought I had gotten over my feelings for you and I was sure that I was in love with Noah and my heart was completely with him, but hanging out with you these past few days made me remember what I liked about you. It made me remember how much I felt for you and why I fell for you in the first place." Finn smiled. "So yes I felt something when you kissed me; something that I hadn't been able to feel with you in a long time."

"But?" Finn knew what was coming.

"But I just can't do this. You're basically asking me to do what you hated Quinn for. You want me to be with you despite me having a boyfriend and isn't that cheating? I'm not that type of person Finn and you know it."

"It's not cheating if you end things with him." Rachel took him by the shoulders and explained in the nicest way she possibly could.

"Finn I can't. Please, you have to understand." Rachel had a few tears forming in her eyes.

"No, please don't cry. I'm sorry Rach. I never meant to make you cry." He grabbed her and pulled her into a hug. She kept her arms across her chest at first, but eventually wrapped her arms around him.

"I'm just trying to get through one thing at a time, please don't make things more stressful for me," she pleaded.

"I'm sorry; it was so selfish of me." After a while of silence, Finn pulled Rachel onstage. He pulled out a chair for her and a chair for himself.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"I wrote this song for you a while ago. I know it's not going to change the fact that we can't be together, but I want you to know that this isn't just some game to me. I'm serious when I tell you that I want to be with you." Rachel patiently waited as Finn got the nerve to sing the song.

_I shouldn't love you but I want to _

_I just can't turn away _

_I shouldn't see you but I can't move_

_I can't look away _

_I shouldn't love you but I want to _

_I just can't turn away _

_I shouldn't see you but I can't move_

_I can't look away _

_And I don't know _

_How to be fine when I'm not _

'_Cause I don't know _

_How to make a feeling stop_

_Just so you know _

_This feeling's takin' control _

_Of me and I can't help it _

_I won't sit around _

_I can't let him win now_

_Thought you should know _

_I've tried my best to let go_

_Of you but I don't want to _

_I just gotta say it all before I go _

_Just so you know_

_It's getting hard to be around you _

_There's so much I can't say _

_Do you want me to hide the feelings? _

_And look the other way _

_And I don't know _

_How to be fine when I'm not _

'_Cause I don't know_

_How to make a feeling stop_

_Just so you know _

_This feeling's takin' control_

_Of me and I can't help it_

_I won't sit around _

_I can't let him win now_

_Thought you should know_

_I've tried my best to let go _

_Of you but I don't want to _

_I just gotta say it all before I go_

_Just so you know_

_This emptiness is killin' me _

_And I'm wonderin' why I've waited so long_

_Lookin' back I realize it was always there _

_Just never spoken_

_I'm waitin' here _

_Been waitin' here _

_Just so you know_

_This feeling's takin' control_

_Of me and I can't help it_

_I won't sit around_

_I can't let him win now_

_Thought you should know_

_I've tried my best to let go _

_Of you but I don't want to_

_Just gotta say it all before I go_

_Just so you know, just so you know _

_Thought you should know_

_I've tried my best to let go _

_Of you but I don't want to _

_Just gotta say it all before I go _

_Just so you know, just so you know _

When he was done, he looked at Rachel to see her reaction.

"As if I needed another reason to fall for you." She had just dried her tears and now new ones had formed. Finn walked over to Rachel and laid a kiss on her lips. This time, she didn't resist it; she just let it happen.

When Rachel got to the hotel later that night, Puck could tell she was hiding something. He just figured it was about the baby.

"Are you okay?" He joined her on her bed.

"I'm fine, why?"

"I don't know, you just seem different tonight. Is the baby okay?"

"Everything's fine. I'm just nervous. Next week is opening night and everyone's running around making sure every last detail is perfect. I hope I don't screw up." She laid down and buried her face in her pillow.

"Babe, you're gonna do fine. If you need extra practice, I'll be more than happy to read lines with you." He put her hand in the palm of his.

"Thank you Noah." She wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a hug. Out of nowhere, Rachel jerked.

"You okay?" Puck jolted up straight.

"I'm great, the baby just kicked." She grabbed Puck's hand and placed it on her belly. Right away, he felt a small kick. It gave him a funny kind of feeling. He was never able to do anything like feeling the baby kick with Quinn and his child, and even though Rachel's baby wasn't technically his, he felt like a father. He looked Rachel in the eyes and cupped his hand on the side of her face.

"I love you," he whispered before laying a kiss onto her lips. "I better let you get some rest. I don't want to keep you up too late." Rachel pulled him back.

"No I don't mind. Just lay with me a while longer?" Puck never could resist Rachel's innocent smile. So he snuggled into her bed and they talked until she fell asleep.

Every day Rachel and Finn got closer. After rehearsals they'd hang out for almost the whole day. Some days they'd practice their scenes, others they'd just go out for lunch and talk for hours on end. Rachel liked that she could talk about anything with Finn. Since Puck didn't know about the baby just yet, it was nice that she could confide in someone who wouldn't judge her. They even started communicating through notes just like Puck and Rachel did. Each morning Rachel couldn't wait to get to her locker to find a note from Finn. He sent her one every day for the week leading up to opening night. It gave her something to smile about. The first one featured the lyrics:

_That should be me holding your hand_

_That should be me making you laugh _

_That should be me this is so sad_

_That should be me _

_That should be me_

_That should be me feeling your kiss _

_That should be me buying you gifts_

_This is so wrong_

_I can't go on _

'_Til you believe _

_That that should be me_

The next day she found a note that said:

_You're beautiful. You're beautiful. _

_You're beautiful, it's true. _

_I saw your face in a crowded place, _

_And I don't know what to do_

'_Cause I'll never be with you_

_Can't you see that I'm the one who understands you?_

_Been here all along so _

_Why can't you see? _

_That you belong with me? _

The next note she received was not song lyrics, but a poem.

_If I could have just one wish, _

_I would wish to wake up everyday _

_To the sound of your breath on my neck_

_The warmth of your lips on my cheek_

_The touch of your fingers on my skin_

_And the feel of your heart beating with mine_

_Knowing that I could never find that feeling_

_With anyone other than you. _

She never knew that Finn had such a way with words. She knew he wrote some amazing songs, but she never thought he could write poetry. Sad to say, that didn't make her any less attracted to him.

On the final day she found a very short note, but one that might possibly be her favorite yet.

_My hopes are so high that your kiss might kill me. _

_So won't you kill me? _

_So I die happy. _

_My heart is yours to fill or burst,_

_To break or bury. _

She felt bad for feeling so happy about something that used to be so special to her and Noah. She cared about him, she really did, and she loved him to death, but all the feelings she had for Finn that she thought she'd gotten over came rushing back as fast as a waterfall. Noah thought her and Finn were just hanging out together because they were costars. She felt lousy for lying to him, but if she told him the truth, she'd lose him and that was something she didn't want.


	4. What kind of game are you playing?

**A/N: Sorry if the story isn't as great as the last one. I'm really working my hardest on it and I really hope you guys like the story! I can't wait until Glee comes back on. Did anyone see their white house performance? I did and it was SO amazing. Did anyone get to go to the Oprah taping? If you did, let me know about it, I'd love to hear what happened! Anyways, please R&R. Thanks for all the support, and I do not own anything. Nothing Glee, No songs in this chapter.**

Today was the day: opening night. Rachel had barely seen her fathers or Puck all day because she had to go to set early. She got up at 5:00, took a shower, got ready and went straight to the auditorium. They practiced all day, so her and Finn didn't even have time to talk about their "situation." Last minute preparations were thrown together and Kaya emphasized the importance of chemistry to Finn and Rachel over and over again. The dress rehearsal went well and Kaya expected the real show to be even better. An hour before the show, the cast was backstage calming their nerves, wishing each other luck, and putting the final touches on their costumes. Rachel and Finn were avoiding each other as much as possible before the show. _Maybe things will be less awkward after the show. _As Rachel sat in front of the mirror, she closed her eyes and envisioned her happy place. That was the only thing that could calm her down before performing. As much as she wanted to be a star and take center stage, she had to admit that she did get nervous. She suddenly felt a tap on her shoulder. She jumped and whirled around to find Noah with an arrangement of pink and red roses in his hand.

"Hey babe, you look great. I just came by to wish you good luck." He kissed her on the cheek and handed her the flowers.

"They're beautiful, thank you Noah! Where are my parents?" She put the flowers on the counter in front of her and gave him a hug.

"They'll be back in a few minutes, they went to find parking."

"I can't believe this is actually happening and I can't believe you're actually here." She smiled at him.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world baby. I'm gonna go get some seats, see you after the show." She gave him one more hug before he left. When she turned around, she noticed Finn staring at her. She just shook her head and rolled her eyes. A few minutes later her fathers came backstage to wish her good luck as well. Then it was time for the cast to take the stage. Everything went better than perfect. Whatever differences Finn and Rachel had, they put aside and made the show a hit. When it was over, the cast received so much applause; they didn't think it would ever stop. Backstage the excitement was very apparent. Hugs were exchanged and everyone was still very high on an adrenaline rush.

"Rachel, you did amazing!" Finn walked over to hug her.

"Thanks Finn, so did you!" As soon as they got the okay, families and friends rushed backstage. Finn was off to the side with his mother when Rachel's fathers and Puck walked back.

"We wanted to take you out to celebrate," said Tim.

"I'd love to, but the whole cast was going to go get some pizza, but you can come with us." She looked directly at Puck hoping he'd want to come along.

"We'd love to." She gave both of her fathers a hug before grabbing Puck's hand and pulling him off.

"I'm so proud of you Rach," Puck whispered in her ear. Rachel, Puck and her parents sat in a booth separate than the rest of the cast and their loved ones.

"That means so much to me." She laid her head on his shoulder and linked her arm with his. Again, Finn jealously looked on. He was sitting with two of the other cast members; Veronica and Kim.

"Rachel's boyfriend is so cute," Veronica squealed to Kim.

"She's _so _lucky to have him," Kim said in agreement.

"Yeah, she's lucky to be with a guy that knocked her up." Finn said in annoyance. He didn't purposely say it out loud, but he didn't whisper it either.

"What are you talking about?" Veronica asked him.

"Rachel's pregnant, can't you tell?" It was clear that Finn was doing it out of spite. If he couldn't have her, he didn't want anyone else, especially Puck, having her. Veronica and Kim looked over at Rachel and noticed her bulge underneath her baggy clothing. If Finn hadn't said anything, they wouldn't have noticed it.

"Now that you mention it, I just thought she put on a few pounds." Veronica and Kim whispered back and forth, then disappeared (most likely to tell the other castmates).

The next morning as Rachel arrived at rehearsal, she got stares from every single person. She wasn't sure what was going on, but she just ignored them and went about her business.

"Hey Finn."

"Oh hey Brianna." Brianna was Finn and Rachel's costar. She played Martha in the production. Brianna and Finn weren't as close as Rachel and Finn, but they definitely got along well.

"I was wondering if maybe you wanted to hang out later, it doesn't have to be a date, well unless you want it to," she said apprehensively. Rachel was watching their interaction off to the side.

"You're great Brianna, but I…" Before he had time to answer her, Rachel pulled him over to her corner of the stage.

"You should go out with her," she suggested.

"Why?" He asked.

"Because she likes you and you guys are pretty cute together," Rachel tried to convince him.

"What kind of game are you playing here Rachel?" Rachel detected a hint of anger in his voice.

"What are you talking about Finn? I'm not playing any games." She played it off.

"First you kiss me, and then you're telling me to go out with someone else?"

"I didn't kiss you, you kissed me remember?" She said, protecting herself.

"Fine, if you want to play it that way. Hey Bri," he called after Brianna.

"Yeah Finn?" She turned around.

"I think I'll take you up on that date." He put his arm around her and walked away. Rachel pretended not to care, but the truth is that it bothered her way more than it should have. Rachel wasn't the type to get jealous easily, but that did rub her the wrong way.

"What kind of game are _you _playing?" She asked Finn when he returned to set after his lunch date with Brianna.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He breezily strolled by her.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Flirting with me and kissing me and then acting like I don't even exist." She put both her hands on her hips and walked over to him.

"Oh, so _now _you're interested in me? Now that I'm dating other girls, you suddenly want to be with me? What happened to being in love with Noah?" He mocked her.

"You think I'm jealous? I am not jealous." She laughed.

"Sure Rachel, whatever you say," he walked away from her.

"Don't you walk away from me," she ran after him.

"You can't do this to me Rachel. You can't tell me to get over you and then pull me back when it's convenient. I'm _trying _to move on Rach, so please just let me. You can't get mad when I start seeing other people; it's not fair to me!"

"You're right Finn, I'm _so _jealous of Brianna. I'm leading you on and it isn't fair to you," she said sarcastically.

"What?" Puck walked in to see Rachel and Finn arguing.

"Noah, this isn't what it looks like." She stuttered. She walked over to Puck.

"Well could you explain it to me, because right now it looks like my girlfriend wants to be with my former best friend." He put emphasis on "former."

"No, Noah you know I want to be with you." She got closer to him but he backed away.

"Do I? I don't know Rachel; I trusted you and I thought you guys were just hanging out because you had to work together. If I had known that you had feelings for him. Do you have feelings for him?" Puck stared Finn straight in the eyes.

"No, I don't," she said unconfidently.

"That's not what you told me," Finn stated.

"Could you stay out of this please? It has nothing to do with you," she yelled at Finn.

"It has everything to do with me!"

"Stay out of this," Puck reiterated. "Did you tell him you have feelings for him?" Puck turned his attention to Rachel.

"No, I told him I was confused. When he kissed me," she reasoned

"Wait, you guys kissed?" Puck asked as if he was taken off guard. "I'm out of here." Puck left a hurt Finn and an angry Rachel standing in the auditorium as a few of their other castmates looked on. Just as Rachel was about to follow Puck, she was stopped by Veronica.

"I know now is probably not a good time, but Kaya wants to see you in her office." Rachel hesitated before making her way to the chair in Kaya's office.

"I'm just gonna get straight to the point," she said without a minute of hesitation, "there's a rumor going around that you're pregnant. Now I don't want to believe that you would jeopardize not only the production itself, but also your future in this production, but I have to ask." She sat there, staring coldly into Rachel's eyes. Rachel knew she wouldn't be able hide it for very much longer.

"I'm sorry Kaya." Rachel avoided Kaya's eyes. When she quickly shot a glance up at her, she noticed a look of hurt of Kaya's face.

"How did I not see this sooner?" Kaya whispered to herself. She looked at Rachel's stomach and noticed that if anyone looked closely, under her baggy clothes, her baby bump definitely showed. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

"What? What do you mean?" Rachel asked in bewilderment.

"I can't have a 16 year old pregnant teenager in my production; it doesn't set a good example," Kaya said unfeeling.

"But the whole play is about sex," Rachel proposed.

"And the consequences, I'm sorry but my decision is final. Could you send Veronica in next please?" She couldn't even look at Rachel when giving her the bad news. Rachel wasn't sure what just happened. She sat in the chair for a few minutes longer because it felt like if she stood up, she'd just fall down. When she finally got the energy to move, she went straight to Finn.

"How could you?" She slapped him.

"What now, drama queen?"

"How could you tell everyone that I'm pregnant!?"

"I just told Veronica and Kim. I didn't know they were going to tell everybody else," he said smugly.

"Thanks to you, Kaya kicked me out of the production. I hope you're happy." She pushed him and stormed away without letting him get a word in edge-wise. _If Finn cared about me as much as he said he did, he wouldn't_ _have done that. _She ran to catch up with Puck who was almost to the hotel by now.

"Wait, please?" She said once she caught up to him.

"Rachel, leave me alone. I'm done." He continued walking and didn't even turn around to look at her.

"You're breaking up with me? What about the baby?"

"Not my kid, not my problem." The deadpan tone in his voice gave her chills all over, and not the good kind. That probably wasn't the best thing he could've said, but at that point, he wasn't concerned about her feelings.

"Actually," she started, "it is your kid." That got him to turn around and walk over to her.

"What do you mean by that?" His eyes were like stone, showing no signs of affection towards her at all. It's not like he didn't love her anymore, she was his first love, that doesn't just go away. But it was going to take him a while to get over the whole Finn thing. He knew somewhere deep down she still had feelings for Finn, but he always wanted to believe that she would get over that and want to be with him.

"The night before we left for Chicago I started thinking about everything and the day I found out about being pregnant was the day after what happened with Karofsky." She never felt comfortable with saying the word 'rape.' It just brought all the frightening memories back. "The last time you and I slept together was before I left for two months. That would make me 6 months pregnant. Thank God I've found ways to make the baby bump less apparent." After she said 6 months pregnant, Puck blocked out everything else. He had no idea what to say, think, or feel.

"Have you even been to a doctor yet? You're 6 months pregnant; anything could be wrong." Rachel felt a little more at ease now. At least she knew he still cared about her.

"Have you told your parents yet?" She sensed he was "zoned out" though. He was staring at the wall behind her like he was hypnotized.

"I wanted to tell you first," she said meekly.

"When were you planning on telling me? When you went into labor?" He said obviously. She tensed up again.

"I swear I was going to tell you after rehearsal today. But Finn, just when things are great with us, he somehow always manages to get in the way of it. I'm not blaming him for this, it's my fault too, but please just believe me when I say I don't want to be with him. Yes, hanging out with him made me feel things I didn't feel with him in a while, but it's not even close to what I feel for you. I told him that I don't want to be with him, but he wouldn't give up," she opened up to Puck.

"Rachel, I love you and I always will, and I'm going to be a good father to our baby, I just need time to think," he said while walking away.

"Does this mean that we're over?" She asked; hurt.

"It just means I need some time." As he walked away, a single tear rolled off Rachel's face and onto the concrete sidewalk.

As Puck walked back to the hotel lots of thoughts swirled around in his head. Even if the child wasn't his, breaking up with Rachel wasn't an option. Whether she believed it or not, he needed her as much as she needed him right now. That didn't mean he wasn't pissed at her, but if she said she didn't have feelings for Finn, then he believed her. He'd made way more mistakes than he could count and Rachel was only human. It wouldn't be fair to blame her for something that wasn't in her control. If she had a choice, he knew she wouldn't want to feel anything for Finn. He wasn't going to abandon her and he definitely wasn't going to abandon his child over something as silly as Finn being childish. As he walked, he wasn't paying attention to where he was going. He ran straight into a tall man in a suit with brown hair.

"I'm sorry sir," Puck said as he continued walking.

"Noah?" Puck spun around. _How does he know who I am? _

"I'm sorry, but maybe you have the wrong person. I don't think we've ever met," Puck said cluelessly.

"Your mom's Kathleen and your sister's Stacy, right?"

"Yeah…" Puck said a little freaked out. _How does he know all this information about me? _

"It's me, your dad." Puck stood frozen with shock.


	5. Are you breaking up with me?

Puck stood completely still as if his body were made out of stone. He had no idea what to even say to the man standing in front of him. He abandoned him and his family when they needed him most and that's exactly what he didn't plan on doing to either of his children. Even if his daughter with Quinn would have survived, he would've done everything he possibly could have to make sure the baby had everything it needed. Puck never thought he'd see this man again in his life. What was he supposed to do? Act happy to see him when inside he was fuming. That wasn't likely.

"Dad? No, no, no, you can't call yourself a 'dad' when you've never been there for me, or mom, or Stacy." Puck sarcastically laughed and continued walking.

"I talked to your mother. You guys seem to be doing well." He said while catching up to Puck.

"We would be doing great if you didn't take everything from us and then walk out on us." Puck never once turned to look his father in the eye. He kept his eyes forward for their whole conversation.

"You don't know the whole story, son." He put his hand on Puck's shoulder and he aggressively shook it off.

"Don't call me that; you don't have that right, you gave it up when you left."

"If you would just hear me out, you'll see that it's not what you think. Your mother hasn't exactly been truthful with you." Puck stopped his dad right before he could say anything else about his mother.

"You don't have the right to talk about my mom either. She was there for me and Stacy when you weren't. You put her through hell. You know she had to deal with cancer while taking care of two kids and working two jobs all on her own? But you didn't care about that; you were too busy fooling around with other women to care." That was something Puck had been holding in for years. He never thought he'd actually have the chance to ever say it though.

"Look, I want to help you guys out. Here, take this." He handed Puck a wad of cash. There had to be at least 500 dollars in there. Puck looked at the money in his hand and debated back and forth internally. _This could really help with the baby, but no, he left, you don't want anything to do with him. _

"You think that this could make up for everything you put me through? That's not even close; I don't want anything from you." _I can't believe he thinks he can buy me off. _

"You are just like your mother. She didn't want any money from me either." There was something about the way he said it that gave Puck a bad taste in his mouth.

"What are you talking about?" he asked curiously.

"Your mother called me a while ago and asked for some money. I told her that I couldn't afford it at the time. Then I talked to her a few weeks ago and told her that I came into some money. Your stepmom and I offered her 500 dollars but she didn't want it. I was hoping you could give it to her." Puck knew he was being insincere. His mom probably told him off and he was doing this because he felt bad; not because he actually cared about his son and daughter.

"You honestly think you can pay us off and everything that happened in the past is forgotten? Let me tell you this; I'll never forget what you did. Maybe one day Mom will; Stacy has no idea she even has a dad, but I won't forget it, and I won't forgive you either."

"I know you are going to have a hard time forgiving me, but I think you'll eventually learn to like your stepmom and brother.

"You've got to be kidding me. I only have one mom, and whoever was stupid enough to marry you, is not it, and Stacy is my only sibling." He rolled his eyes.

"Will you just give this to your mother please?" He said referring to the money in Puck's hand. Puck had almost forgotten about the money. He handed his father the wad of money and walked inside the hotel. Once Puck got inside, he dialed the numbers on his cell phone and called his mother.

"Why would you ask him for money? We don't need anything from him." Puck had told his mother all about his meeting with his father. He wanted to know what on earth would make her contact him for anything.

"The cancer treatments were expensive and we were running low on money. I didn't know what else to do," she explained innocently.

"Then you should have told me. I would have gotten a job; two if I needed to."

"Honey, you're the child, I'm not going to expect you to work; you should be out enjoying your high school years," she said calmly.

"Mom, I don't care. You don't deserve everything he put you through and it's not fair that he suddenly wants to be a part of our lives, it's just not!" Puck paced back and forth in the empty hotel room while talking to his mom. After a few minutes of silence, Kathleen spoke.

"I made him leave."

"What are you talking about?"

"He cheated on me one too many times and I couldn't take it anymore, so I told him he had to leave," she confessed. Puck froze up again for another minute. He wasn't sure if he was hearing his mother right.

"It doesn't matter, he still could've been a part of our lives if he wanted to and he didn't." He knew there was no excuse for a father leaving his children.

"He wanted to be a part of your life, but I wouldn't let him. I didn't want you guys having anything to do with him, so after a few years, he just gave up. He stopped calling, he stopped sending letters and money, and I hadn't heard from him since." _That's what he meant when he said that Mom wasn't being truthful with me._

"I don't think I heard you right. He _wanted _to be a part of our lives?" Puck wasn't sure what to believe. He thought maybe his mind was playing tricks on him.

"If I didn't make him leave, he would have left on his own. He was threatening to leave for months, so I finally told him I couldn't stand it anymore." He understood why his mom did it, but he didn't appreciate her lying to him.

"Why would you lie to me? Why couldn't you have just told me the truth instead of having me think my father walked out on me and wanted nothing to do with me?"

"You would have hated me. You were 12 years old at the time; you wouldn't have understood why I did it." She justified her reasoning.

"I have to go." He spoke into the phone.

"I know you're upset with me now, but I know what I did was the best thing for you and your sister, and I will never regret my decision." Puck let his mother finish before hanging up the phone. All he kept thinking about was how he had so much going on, and he didn't think it was fair. _What did I do to deserve this? Am I that bad of a person that these things are always happening to me? _He didn't regret this baby at all, but of course he wished it all could have waited until he was older. Jocelyn was always in the back of his mind. If his daughter was still alive, he'd have two children to provide for. He didn't think that the children should suffer because he wasn't ready for a child. Yes, there was always adoption, but Quinn wouldn't have given up her daughter; she'd already told Puck it wasn't an option. Rachel on the other hand; he had no idea what she would want to do. It was too late for abortion; something that Puck was very grateful for, but Rachel might want to consider adoption and he wouldn't fight her on it. A few hours later, Rachel's parents retired to their room, leaving Rachel and Puck alone. For most of the evening, Puck laid on his bed and Rachel sat on hers. She'd stare at him when he wasn't looking and he'd stare at her when she wasn't looking. Each wished the other would say something. Right now they both hungered to talk to each other. They needed each other more than they ever had before. Puck wanted so badly to hear Rachel's advice and supportive words. She always knew what to say to him and she was the only one who could get through to him and allow him to open up. He needed that right now.

As soon as Puck said he needed time, Rachel's heart broke into a million little pieces. There were no words to describe how badly it hurt her to think that they were over. That wasn't a possibility as far as Rachel was concerned. Even if she wasn't pregnant, she'd want to be with Puck. He made her happy, he made her laugh and she could always be herself around him. And the thing she loved most about being with Puck: he never judged her. Although he was stubborn sometimes, he'd never shut her out and leave her in the dark about what he was feeling. That was something that took him forever to learn. He was not just her boyfriend, but her best friend and everything came naturally with him. That's what she needed right now. She needed her best friend to hold her and tell her everything was going to be alright. She needed him to tell her the truth; no matter how honest it was, like he always did. She just needed him to talk to her again. The silence was what hurt her the most. Her and Puck always had something to talk about; even if he just let her ramble on, it was never silent unless they wanted it to be. This wasn't comfortable silence though; it was awkward and frankly she didn't like it. She knew Puck wasn't going to break first so if she wanted results, she had to take action.

"So your mom told me what happened today." Rachel broke the silence.

"Did she tell you about how she lied to me?" He kept his face hidden underneath his hands.

"She also told me that you'd probably need someone to talk to." Rachel didn't make eye contact with Puck at first, she just cracked her knuckles. He hesitated for a minute. He didn't want to take his anger out on Rachel and say something that he might regret. So he calmed himself down before speaking to her.

"I just don't understand why she couldn't tell me the truth before. Instead I had to hear it from him." He hated saying dad because no matter what his mother said, it didn't change his opinion. If he cared about his kids, he wouldn't have stopped trying.

"You were young at the time. If she knew you were ever going to run into your dad, she would have told you a long time ago. I'm sure she would much rather have had you hear it from her. She was probably just waiting until the time was right." She carefully walked over to Puck's bed. They seemed to be getting along; she didn't want to mess that up. When he didn't object, she sat down.

"You always know what to say to me." He removed his hands from his face and put them around Rachel's waist. "I'm sorry."

"No, I should be the one that's sorry. You trusted me and I don't know what came over me. I'm so sorry. I just want us to be in love again." She laid against Puck's chest and wrapped her arm around him.

"I've never been out of love with you Rachel. Just forget about everything with Finn. We have more important things to worry about." He kissed her forehead and leaned his cheek against her head.

"I know it hasn't even been a day, but I missed being with you. I was so scared that you were going to break up with me. I don't know what I would do without you." She snuggled closer to Puck's chest.

"You don't ever have to worry about that. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon." There were a few minutes of silence, but it was a comfortable one this time; one that Rachel didn't mind. "So what are we going to do about the baby?" Puck asked.

"I have to talk to my dads tomorrow. I'm pretty sure they'll want adoption." When she said adoption, Puck noticed her voice crack a little. He knew that wasn't Rachel's decision, but she wanted to make her dads happy. Learning that their daughter was 6 months pregnant was disappointment enough in their eyes. "What do you want to do?" She looked up at Puck.

"Forget about what I want; forget about what your parents want. What do you want? If you want adoption, then we'll look at some families until we find the best one. If you want to keep this baby, then I'm here with you every step of the way." That's exactly what she needed to hear. She knew his advice would put her more at ease. Noah was actually pretty good at giving advice, if she did say so herself.

"Of course I don't want to give my child to someone else; I don't think anybody ever does, but I can't keep this baby, I just can't." She stopped to let a few tears fall. "Now I know what Quinn must have felt. This is so much harder than I could have ever imagined."

"Don't cry babe; everything will work out; it always does." He stroked her back to calm her down.

"I needed to hear that. But what about my dads? What if they kick me out? What if they don't approve of my decision, whatever that may be? The thing I've always been scared of most is disappointing my parents. They'll hate me." She removed herself from Puck's arms and sat up. She laid her head in her hands and sobbed a little.

"Your parents aren't going to kick you out." Puck sat up as well.

"But Quinn's parents kicked her out. Mine could do the same," she said in a frantic tone.

"Rach, listen to me. I don't know Quinn's parents all that well, but yours are nowhere near anything like hers. Unfortunately Quinn's parents didn't care enough about their daughter, but your fathers do. They might not approve of what happened, and they might not agree with your decision, but it is ultimately your decision. They can't force you to do something you don't want to. And your parents aren't going to kick you out. They aren't going to let anything ruin your relationship. I'm not saying it not going to be strained, but you guys will be fine. They'll still love you and you'll still be their daughter no matter what." Rachel flung her arms around Puck's neck and held on tight. He knew she needed someone to be there for her right now, so he sat there with her in his arms. That was the idea of a perfect night for him anyway. Noah always had a way of making her feel like the only person that mattered. He'd come a long way from his "player days." He never even looked, let alone thought, about other girls. He wouldn't shut people out anymore; he found it easier to let people in. He treated everybody differently. He no longer bullied every kid he'd seen in the hallway. He had fallen in love. He was expecting a child. He was willing to do anything and everything he could to support Rachel and provide for his child. Rachel would like to think that the changes had something to do with her; she'd like to think she had somewhat of an influence on him, but the truth was that she did. He knew that if it was any other girl; his ways wouldn't have changed. It was just something about Rachel that made anyone want to fall madly in love with her. Maybe it was the way she was so determined and driven to go after what she wanted. Maybe it was just the way she encouraged everybody and never made you feel dumb. She was inspiring and special and as close to the perfect girl as it could get. Not to mention she was pretty damn talented too. There would never be words to explain how much Puck loved her and they were both happy that for now, nothing was getting in their way and they finally reconciled. But that would probably all end after their talk with her fathers tomorrow.


	6. Lima Loser

**A/N: Haven't written an author's note in a while. I don't own glee or anything related to it. I wrote my own reason why they slept together (you'll see) so I know that it doesn't exactly go along with the show, but oh well! Sorry it took so long to get the chapter up, been pretty busy the past few days! Anyways, hope you guys really like the new chapter. Read and Review please? Did you guys see the first episode of Glee? What'd you think of it? I personally loved it, of course! (:**

"Hey daddy, dad, can I talk to you for a minute?" Rachel asked her fathers as they sat down to breakfast the next morning.

"Shouldn't you be leaving for the auditorium by now?" asked Bill

"That's sort of what I want to talk to you about. Kaya kicked me out," she said nervously.

"What why, do I need to go down there and talk to her?" Tim got up from his chair, but Rachel insisted he sit back down.

"No daddy, this is my fault. I made a mistake." Rachel lifted her head up to meet her fathers' eyes. She knew that they knew this 'mistake' wasn't something good.

"You're pregnant?" Bill knew right away. All the signs were there, he just never wanted to confront her about it. He thought she'd be brave enough to admit it herself. Rachel slowly nodded her head 'yes.' Both Bill and Tim's eyes darted toward Puck who in turn looked away. Their stares made him feel very uncomfortable.

"Please let me explain first," she pleaded.

"What is there to explain? You had sex when you knew we didn't approve of it. Why didn't you use the birth control that we got you?" asked a frustrated Bill.

"I did, but that's not always effective. Noah and I made sure we were careful when we slept together, which is why I thought it was someone else's child." She knew she had to tell them about her rape eventually, but this wasn't the way she wanted to go about it. She didn't want to have to tell them all of the details, and she didn't want Noah hearing all of the details. It was something she wasn't exactly comfortable with.

"Who else's child would it be then?" asked a suspicious Tim.

"You don't have to do this Rachel. If you're not ready," Puck interjected.

"Actually, she does," Tim eyed Puck.

"I think I'll go wait outside." As much as Puck wanted to be in the room to support Rachel, he couldn't bring himself to do it. Truth be told, he didn't want to hear about the horrendous night all over again. It would only make his anger towards Karofsky emerge again. He didn't know nor did he care where Karofsky was, all he knew was how unfair it was that he wasn't in jail for what he did. It didn't matter though, wherever he was, he was far away from Rachel. He also didn't want to see the pain on Rachel's face when she told the story. It would hurt him too much to see her hurting again. He hoped for Rachel's sake that her parents were supportive and understanding. He knew she needed that. That's when a thought went through his head. _What about my mom? I haven't even told her yet. Sure she was supportive of Quinn's pregnancy, but I don't think she'll be too thrilled with Rachel's too. I know I'm going to let her down; I don't even want to see her face when I tell her..._

Just then, Rachel came into the hallway with tears streaming down her cheeks. Puck scooped her up into his arms.

"Are you okay?" He pushed her hair behind her ears and kissed her forehead.

"They don't want me to keep the baby. They understand that I've been through a lot, but they said if I want to continue living at home, then I have to settle for adoption," she said quietly.

"They're probably just mad Rach. Give it time, they'll be more accepting." He comforted her.

"No, I'm going to make everyone happy and just give this baby to someone who wants it." She folded her arms across her chest.

"But if that's not what makes you happy…" Rachel cut him off before he had a chance to say anything else.

"I can't think about myself right now. I have to think about what's best for the baby, and what my parents want, what you want. What _do_ you want anyway?" She brought her hands up to her face and covered her eyes.

"I want whatever you want. I know this is hardest on you and I'm not going to put any added pressure on you that you don't need. Rachel, stop worrying about what other people want on focus on what you want and what's best for the baby," he spoke in a nurturing tone.

"Well what I want and what's best for the baby are two completely different things," she said sadly. She wrapped her arms around Puck's waist.

"I wish I knew what to say to make you feel better. You've been put through so much hell from all these different people and it really isn't fair to you. You don't deserve it at all!" Puck calmed himself down once again.

"As much as it will hurt, we have to give this baby up. I can't… I just." Her voice was quickly muffled when she put her head against Puck's chest.

"Shh, you don't have to say anything else. We can look at adoptive families tomorrow. We'll get through this; we always do." He leaned his head on top of hers and stroked a strip of her hair.

"Hey mom," Puck whispered into the phone. Rachel was taking a nap for a few hours and Puck didn't object. She didn't need to be on the set early anymore, so he figured sleep was the best thing for her right now.

"Hey honey, how are you?" It sounded like his mom was juggling a few things and he thought this might not be the best time.

"Maybe I'll call you back later; you sound pretty busy."

"No, no, it's fine!" She said excitedly. "What are you up to?"

"Nothing really, Rachel's sleeping right now and I thought this would be a good chance to talk to you about something." He didn't want Rachel knowing about the conversation because he knew it would stress her out. She hated seeing him hurt almost as much as he hated seeing her hurt.

"Sure honey, what's up?" Puck hesitated at first. He didn't know exactly how to tell his mom that he got another girl pregnant, but he didn't want to hide this from her either. Thanks to Rachel, he had gotten a lot closer to his family and he had to say, he liked having a close-knit family again.

"I'm not sure of the best way to tell you this, but um, Rachel, she's uh, she's pregnant mom." As soon as he spoke those words, all he heard was silence. It sounded like his mom stopped whatever she was doing. After a long while of silence, he heard her sigh into the phone. "Say something…please?"

"What do you want me to say Noah? I can't say I approve of this. I thought you knew better than that. First Quinn, now Rachel, what is wrong with you?" He could tell she was pacing back and forth.

"I know Mom, I'm so sorry. I'm constantly letting you down. This isn't fair to you, it's not fair to Stacy, and it's definitely not fair to Rachel. I screwed up; I'm sorry. What can I say; I'm a Lima Loser just like my dad was."

"I can't talk about this right now. I'll talk to you later." And just like that, she hung up the phone. Before she did, Puck could tell she had started crying. Not only was he riddled with so much guilt for making his mother cry and letting her down, but he knew he screwed up terribly. _I __**am **__a Lima Loser; just like him, he thought to himself before leaving the hotel. _As Puck was on his walk, he ran into someone he didn't expect to see at all this summer.

"Hey Puck!" Quinn excitedly threw her arms around Puck's neck; giving him a friendly hug.

"What are you doing here?" He didn't ask like he wasn't happy to see her; it was more of a surprised question.

"My ballet lessons are over for the summer so I decided to come down here and visit you and Rachel. How is everything between you guys?" Quinn joined Puck on his walk.

"We're just taking it one step at a time. We're always being tested. If it's not one thing it's another and I'm happy with Rachel, I just wish that for once _we _could be happy; you know? I wish we didn't have to deal with drama over and over again." Ever since the whole "baby scandal" with Quinn, Quinn and Puck had gotten a lot closer. Whether they wanted to admit it or not, they were bonded for life. Their baby might not have been born, but that was still a connection they would share for the rest of their lives.

"If you guys really love each other, then things will work out for the best." Puck noticed that she had started to drift off after she spoke.

"You miss Finn, don't you?" He asked knowingly.

"I really wish that I didn't. I mean, he hates me; we haven't even spoken since the whole thing broke out. If he's ready to move one, why can't I be?" She lowered her head and sat on the bench in the park they stopped at.

"I'm sorry Quinn. I think deep down he really does still love you, but maybe he's just…afraid?" Puck sat next to her on the bench.

"Doesn't he think I'm afraid too; I'm terrified. I want to be with him, but how do I know that he's not just going to go running back to Rachel again." Puck gave Quinn a suspicious look. _What does she know about Finn and Rachel?_

"What happened with Finn and Rachel?"

"I've seen the way he looks at her. They've kissed; more than once. Why do you think I slept with you that night?" Puck waited for her to continue her reason. "I had just gotten into an argument with Finn about Rachel. I told him I didn't like him hanging out with her so much; but he insisted that they were just friends and that I was just being jealous and insecure. He pissed me off so much. Then I ran into you and you offered to listen to my problems. The real reason I was with you that night was because I thought I could get back at Finn. I didn't plan on it going that far though but when it did, I immediately felt guilty and then the next day Finn apologized and wanted to get back together, and that only made me feel even guiltier. But I swore to myself that he would never find out about it. It was a one time thing that would never happen again. It's not that I didn't like you, I just never saw you in that way until that night. And then I ended up pregnant and I freaked. I wanted to be with Finn more than anything, so I told him it was his kid. If I could take everything from that night back, I would in a heartbeat." Puck understood where Quinn was coming from. It didn't hurt him that she slept with him out of revenge. He knew how badly Quinn was hurting; he dealt with the same thing when he almost lost Rachel, but he wasn't going to let what almost happened to him and Rachel happen to Finn and Quinn. He was going to find a way to make Quinn happy somehow.

"I understand. I can't even tell you why I let what happened that night happen in the first place. The only real reason is that I did have feelings for you at the time." She looked at him in the same way he looked at her when she was explaining the situation. She let him continue. "Finn and I both had a crush on you since the beginning of freshman year, but we always promised that we'd never act on those feelings. When he started dating you, it really hurt me. It was the first time I had ever had true feelings for a girl like that. So I swore to myself that I would never like a girl that much again. When you came to me that night and told me that you and Finn got into a fight, I thought "good, that's what he gets." I didn't plan on it going as far as it did either, but I couldn't say that I wasn't happy about it at the time. When I found out you were pregnant, I felt extremely guilty as well. I couldn't believe I had done that to my best friend; someone that I had known my whole life. After a while though, I saw how happy he made you and I didn't want to get in the way of that. So I tried moving on and dating Santana and a lot of other girls. But when I met Rachel; everything changed. She was the first girl I had those types of feelings for since you. Pretty soon everything that I felt for you was now what I felt for her. I never planned on falling in love with her; that's for sure." Puck let out a slight chuckle at the thought. "But I guess those things are out of our control, huh? Look Quinn, there's always going to be a part of me that will love you and be connected to you, because of Jocelyn." For the first time in all of the years she had known Puck, she could tell he was being truly open and honest with her. She really liked seeing that side of him; considering he didn't show it to many people. She was surprised at the fact that Finn and Puck were actually fighting over her long before she got pregnant; she never expected to hear that. But she was glad that her and Puck could finally be honest with each other about not just that night, but everything. It made her have a new respect for the guy she always thought of as a "Lima Loser."

"I'm sorry I called you a Lima Loser before; you're not even close to a Lima Loser," she said truthfully.

"You were right anyways. I am a Lima Loser, just like my father." He turned away from Quinn, who was now wondering what made him act this way.

"You're not, Puck. I'm not sure where this is coming from, but you are nothing like your father; nothing."

"I got you _and _Rachel pregnant, and what would have happened if Jocelyn had been born? My kids would have a terrible life because I couldn't give them everything they needed." She wasn't sure if he was angry or hurt; probably a mixture of both.

"Everything happens for a reason, Puck. If Jocelyn had been born, maybe Rachel wouldn't have even gotten pregnant. Everything happens for a reason; just remember that. This baby might be the thing that brings you and Rachel even closer together. Maybe this is the one thing that could fix everything?" He thought that was just wishful thinking, but Quinn seemed like she actually believed that. He smiled slightly at the one person who actually believed in him and Rachel's relationship. She wanted them to work. He knew that Quinn would be there when Rachel needed her and he was so thankful for that.

"But…" Quinn interrupted him.

"But nothing Puck, plus you weren't the only one in on the whole baby-making side of things." They both laughed. "Both Rachel and I were fully aware of what we were doing; we're just as much to blame as you are."

"Wow. I can't believe you're actually sticking up for me." He smiled at Quinn.

"What are friends for?" She playfully bumped him with her shoulder.

"Finn's here, you know." Puck figured he'd tell Quinn. Maybe they could meet and work things out.

"Here as in Chicago?" She seemed surprised. Puck just shook his head.

"Oh," was all she said.

"You should go talk to him," he suggested.

"Thanks, but no thanks. I really don't feel like getting rejected again. I've already tried talking to him after prom and he made it clear. He wants nothing to do with me." This time it was Quinn's turn to shed a little tear. Normally, Puck hated girls crying; he never handled it well, but he got used to it what with everything Rachel's had to go through in the last year. Puck didn't want to say the wrong thing to Quinn, so he just hugged her. She gratefully returned the hug. After a moment, Puck got up.

"You guys will find a way to work things out; trust me." He winked at Quinn.

"Thanks Puck; I sure hope so. Hey, do you think Rachel would mind if I stopped by the hotel later to see her?"

"I think she'd love to see you." He smiled at Quinn, wrote down the address to the hotel they were staying at, then left.


	7. Over It

**A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this new chapter up. I've worked on this chapter for a while, so hopefully it shows and you like it! Hopefully it's worth the wait. Even if you don't just let me know. Please avoid complete slams :D Songs are back! Songs in this chapter: Everything by Michael Buble and Over it by Katherine McPhee. Oh and also there's this thing for fanfiction awards, it would mean a lot if you guys could nominate and vote for either this story or The Dare or both if you want. This is the website: .com/gleeawards. Thanks, and Read and Review! Disclaimer: I don't own glee, any of the characters, or song lyrics. **

"Hey." Puck walked into the hotel to find that Rachel had awoken from her nap.

"Hey, where were you?" She asked; sitting up.

"I just went for a walk, clear my head a little. I ran into Quinn too."

"Quinn? What's she doing here?" There was surprise and excitement apparent in Rachel's voice.

"She came to visit us," he said joining Rachel on her bed. "She should be coming by later."

"Does she know about Finn?" Rachel asked hesitantly.

"She knows he's here, but I didn't tell her about… you and him." Puck looked down. Rachel couldn't help but notice that it still hurt him to even mention the situation. She quickly changed the subject.

"So I talked to an adoption agent and she said she'll send us some portfolios that we can take a look at this week." Rachel scooted closer to Noah.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" He knew she didn't want to; they didn't have any other choice but to settle for adoption.

"I don't have any other choice." See. Rachel sat between Puck's legs and rested her head against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and laid his hands against her protruding belly. It became more noticeable now that she didn't have to hide it anymore.

"I really wish we could show Kaya what she's missing. I can't believe she just kicked you out of the play like that; that's screwed up."

"It's okay. I can't say it doesn't hurt though. It just sucks. Its like every time I take one step toward reaching my dream, I take two more steps back." Puck swore that he was going to do whatever it took to get Kaya to see what she was missing out on.

"I'm sorry. I really am. You lost everything because of me and I never wanted that to happen to you." He tightened his grip on Rachel.

"This is the last time I ever want to hear you say this is your fault." She turned to give Puck a stern look. "This is not your fault, okay? Things happen. We made a mistake." She cupped both hands on each of his cheeks and stretched up to kiss his lips.

"I really don't know what I ever did to deserve you." He put his head on top of hers and started humming. Pretty soon he started singing. Rachel closed her eyes and listened to him softly sing a Michael Buble song.

_You're a falling star; you're the get away car_

_You're the line in the sand when I go too far _

_You're the swimming pool, on an August day _

_And you're the perfect thing to say _

_And you play it coy, but it's kinda cute _

_Ah, when you smile at me you know exactly what you do_

_Baby don't pretend, that you don't know it's true_

_Cause you can see it when I look at you_

Rachel jerked which caused Puck to immediately stop singing.

"What's wrong?" he asked worriedly.

"The baby just kicked," she smiled. He felt her stomach; but felt no movement.

"I don't feel anything," He was disappointed. He recently learned that moments like this should be treasured because you never know what might happen. After all, he was never able to have moments like that with Quinn and Jocelyn and he never will. Now all his focus was on his and Rachel's baby boy or girl.

"Sing again," Rachel smiled. "I think she likes it." Before Puck started singing again, he noticed that Rachel said "she."

"You just called the baby a she. How do you know?" He looked at her with inquiring eyes.

"I set up a doctor's appointment for today and they did an ultrasound."

"Why didn't you tell me? I would have come with you."

"I don't know, I don't want to bother you with every little thing. Some things I want to take care of myself. I feel like since we've started dating I rely on you for every little thing, I guess I just want some of my independence back. I was never the type of girl to need a boy in my life but when you came along, that changed for me. It freaked me out to be honest and I wasn't sure how to react. Everytime something bad went wrong, I always leaned on you to solve my problems, and I don't want to do that anymore. It's time I start becoming myself again." Puck understood where Rachel was coming from.

"I guess I understand that but it's okay to need help sometimes. After all you were the one that taught me that." He put his hand on her stomach and started singing again.

_And in this crazy life, and through these crazy times _

_It's you, it's you, you make me sing_

_You're every line, you're every word, you're everything_

Puck thought about how true those words actually were; how true the whole song was. Rachel was his rock through it all. Even before all the baby drama with Quinn was exposed, she helped him in ways she probably didn't even realize. She made him find himself again; the him that he never would have been able to find without her. She made him want to be a better person; to try harder and to develop strong relationships with all the people in his life. Not only was he glad about that, but his mother was too. She was just glad her son wasn't hanging around with bad influences anymore. She'd rather him spend all his free time with Rachel than for him to be waiting around outside the nearest 7 Eleven for someone to offer to buy him a beer.

_You're a carousel; you're a wishing well, _

_And you light me up, when you ring my bell_

_You're a mystery, you're from outer space_

_You're every minute of everyday_

_And I can't believe, that I'm your man, _

_And I get to kiss you baby just because I can_

_Whatever comes our way, ah we'll see it_

_And you know that's what our love can do_

Rachel was swaying back and forth to his voice until she realized he had stopped singing.

"I just felt her kick." Rachel saw Noah's face light up when he felt the baby kick. She reached up to touch his cheek and noticed that it was wet. After seeing how happy just that little kick made him; she couldn't help but let out a little tear as well. He started singing again, but this time he sang it to his daughter.

_And in this crazy life, and through these crazy time _

_It's you, it's you, you make me sing_

_You're every line, you're every word, you're everything_

_And in this crazy life, and through these crazy times_

_It's you, it's you, you make me sing_

_You're every line, you're every word, you're everything_

_You're every song, and I sing along_

'_Cause you're my everything _

_Yeah, yeah_

"That was beautiful." Rachel let out a comforted sigh. "Have you talked to your mother yet about… you know, the situation?" Rachel asked awkwardly.

"Yeah," he said quickly.

"What did she have to say?" Rachel turned around to face Noah.

"She didn't say anything. She was angry, hurt, disappointed. She was upset that I not only got Quinn pregnant, but you too. Then she just hung up." Rachel knew that disappointing his mother hurt Puck more than anything. She knew what that felt like. Right now neither of their parents were being very supportive, but why should they? _They'll come around though; they're not like other parents, right? _

"Your mom was just surprised by the news. Give her time; she'll come around babe. Just like my dads; right now they're mad, but they love me, and they'll support me." Puck knew Rachel was right, it just killed him that his mother ended the conversation the way she did. "Maybe you should call her back?" Rachel suggested. After thinking it over, Puck pulled out his cell phone and went into the bathroom to make the phone call. At first, the phone just kept ringing. After about 7 rings, someone finally picked up.

"Hey Stace, where's mom?" Puck asked his little sister.

"Mommy, Puck wants to talk to you!" She shouted into the phone.

"What do you want Noah? I'm very busy right now." Puck took a long deep breath before speaking.

"Mom, I know you're mad, and upset, probably hurt and probably really disappointed, but I need your support right now; more than ever. I know this isn't exactly how you pictured my life to turn out, but things happen and I just need my mother. And you know I never come to you for anything Mom." After some reconsideration, Kathleen realized that he was right. Puck never asked anyone for help unless he really needed it.

"Stacy and I will be on the first bus to Chicago we can find." She didn't seem as upset now.

"No, you don't have to come; I just hated knowing that you were disappointed in me."

"Honey, I love you no matter what happens. Of course I'm not thrilled with the news, but I will always support you. What kind of mother would I be if I didn't?" Puck let out a sigh of relief. He hoped that Rachel's parents would come around soon too because he knew their support meant the world to Rachel. He hung up the phone and walked back into the room to find Rachel sitting on the bed comforting a crying Quinn.

"Hey… what's wrong?" Puck asked walking over to the girls. It took Quinn a while to finally get her words out.

"Finn; he texted me and said he wanted to talk about us and possibly about getting back together. I told him I was in Chicago, so we met up. I thought it would be good, but he completely blew up on me. He said he didn't want anything to do with me; that me sleeping with Puck was something he couldn't get over. He said we can't even be friends anymore," she said between breaths. Her crying made it hard for Puck to understand what she was saying, but Rachel heard every word. Rachel squeezed Quinn tighter and stayed quiet for a while.

"Finn's just… he's just being a jerk," Rachel stated.

"He said something about moving on and wanting to be with you." Rachel cringed a little at that. She didn't want to be the reason for her recent best friend not being happy. Quinn made sure Rachel was happy with Puck even though she liked him and that's exactly what Rachel was going to do. To be honest, she had completely forgotten that Finn was still in the same city.

"I'm going to talk to him; don't worry about it," Rachel assured Quinn.

"No, don't waste your energy; it's no use, he doesn't want me." Quinn sobbed harder.

"I'll talk to him," Puck mouthed to Rachel.

"If he doesn't want you, then he's not worth your tears; plain and simple." Rachel suddenly had an idea. "You should sing about it."

"I don't think singing would really help me get over it." Quinn looked up at Rachel.

"You'd be surprised at the power of a good break up song." Puck had already left to go talk to Finn, which just left Rachel and Quinn alone. Rachel pulled Quinn off the bed and sat her down at the table. "I think you'll find this song very therapeutic. I know it helped me get over a lot of boy drama, and it could help you." Rachel turned a song on her I pod and let Quinn start whenever she was ready. "Just pretend Finn is there and you're letting him know you're over it." Quinn dried her eyes and took a deep breath before starting.

_I'm over your lies_

_And I'm over your games_

_I'm over you asking me_

_When you know I'm not okay _

_You call me at night_

_And I pick up the phone_

_And though you be telling me_

_I know you're not alone _

_Oh and that's why your eyes_

_I'm over it_

_Your smile_

_I'm over it _

_Realized _

_I'm over it_

_I'm over it_

_I'm over _

Quinn started out very softly, but as she went on, she got louder and she actually felt free. She was angry and hurt and even though it was her fault why they broke up, she knew she didn't deserve all the crap that Finn was putting her through; texting her one second saying they should get back together then the next calling her a "slut" for sleeping with his best friend. She knew it wasn't like him but at this point, she was over it.

_For wanting you to be wanting me_

_No that ain't no way to be_

_How I feel, read my lips _

_Because I'm so over _

_I'm sorry _

_Movin on and it's my time_

_You never were a friend of mine_

_Hurt at first, a little bit_

_But now I'm so over _

_I'm so over it _

_I'm over your hands _

_And I'm over your mouth_

_Trying to drag me down_

_And fill me with self doubt_

_Oh and that's why your world_

_I'm over it_

_So sure_

_I'm over it _

_I'm not your girl _

_I'm over it_

_I'm over it_

_I'm over _

_For wanting you to be wanting me_

_No that ain't no way to be _

_How I feel, read my lips_

_Because I'm so over _

_I'm sorry _

_Movin on and it's my time _

_You never were a friend of mine_

_Hurt at first, a little bit_

_But now I'm so over _

_I'm so over it _

_I'm so over it _

_Oh don't call, don't come by _

_Ain't no use, don't ask me why_

_You'll never change_

_There'll be no more crying in the rain_

_No, oh, oh_

_I'm over it_

Quinn took another deep breath after she finished and she felt empowered. It felt good to tell him off; even if it wasn't him exactly. Rachel ran over to her friend who started crying again, but it wasn't because of him. It was because of the new sense of freedom she felt.

"Told you it would work." Rachel smiled.

"You were right; you're always right Rachel." Quinn hugged her friend back. "I'm sorry; I haven't even asked how you've been."

"It's fine Quinn, you're my friend, I wanted to help you. I've been okay, thank you."

"How have your parents handled the whole pregnancy situation?"

"They were upset at first; and understandably so, but I think they're starting to come around."

"I'm really glad you have their support; it's a lot harder doing it without them." Quinn said sadly. Rachel scooped up the broken-hearted blonde in her arms and hugged her tightly.

"Your parents will see one day that they made a mistake kicking you out, and Finn will realize he made a mistake too; letting you go."

While Rachel was helping Quinn get over Finn, Puck went to talk some sense into the boy who broke her heart. When he arrived at the auditorium, he pulled Finn aside.

"I need to talk to you," he demanded.


	8. The truth comes out

"What do you want?" questioned Finn.

"I need to talk to you about Quinn." Finn rolled his eyes and walked away.

"What about her?"

"How could you hurt her like that? If you didn't want to be with her you should have told her that, but there was no need to call her a slut," Puck remarked firmly.

"You have room to talk," he grumbled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Puck grabbed Finn's arm.

"You know exactly what it means. You're going around preaching to me about hurting Quinn, when you're the reason we're not together!" He shouted. "How, why would you even do that to me?" Puck could tell it still hurt Finn that he slept with Quinn.

"I… it wasn't supposed to go that far. It just happened." Puck said guiltily.

"That's crap. Nothing ever just happens. What if I "just happened" to sleep with Rachel? You wouldn't find that okay would you?" Puck knew everything Finn was saying made sense.

"I get that okay, I do, and of course I wouldn't be okay with you sleeping with Rachel. But do you know how much it hurt me when you started dating Quinn? We both promised that neither of us would ask her out and the next day I find out from everyone else that you two are together. You didn't even have the guts to tell me yourself…"

"So that's what it was? You slept with my girlfriend to get back at me?" Finn asked confused.

"Honestly?" Finn shook his head. "I guess it was part of the reason, but I swear we never meant for it to happen. She was upset and I was jealous; it just wasn't a good combination." Puck wasn't sure what to expect from Finn. He couldn't read the expression on Finn's face.

"Do you want to know the reason I've been pushing so hard to be with Rachel lately?" Puck nodded his head for Finn to continue. "I do like Rachel, but there was a part of me that thought if I could be with her, I'd finally make you feel what I felt. I know how much you love her and I figured if I could take away the one person who means the most to you like you did to me, then things would finally be even." Puck tried to talk, but Finn cut in. "No let me finish please. You really have no idea how much it hurt me when I found out about you guys. She put me through hell; yelling at me, forcing me to get a job, when all along she knew it wasn't my kid. I thought it was the cruelest thing somebody could ever do." It sounded like he had more to say, but he just sat down on the edge of the stage. Puck carefully walked over to him and put his hand on his shoulder. When Finn didn't shake it off, Puck sat down next to him.

"I really am sorry Finn; for everything. I know how much it sucked when I thought Rachel was pregnant with Karofsky's child. I couldn't imagine how I'd feel if it was one of my best friends. I honestly didn't mean to hurt you that night and if I could take it all back, I would." Finn noticed that Puck genuinely seemed sorry. He knew they had been friends for too long to just let that friendship go. He held out his hand and they shared a handshake which turned into a quick pat-on-the-back kind of hug. "Do you love Quinn?" Puck asked.

"I…" Puck asked the question again. "Do you love Quinn?"

"When you're in love with someone that doesn't just go away…"

"Exactly and she feels the same way about you, so you need to talk to her. Even if you guys don't get back together, you should still talk it out. Even if you guys don't want to admit it, you do need each other." Usually the roles were reversed and Finn was giving Puck advice, but this time it was the other way around.

"Thanks Puck. Uh, do you think you could let her know that I'd really like to talk to her; apologize and everything."

"Sure, no problem." Puck got up and started walking towards Kaya's office.

"Where are you going?"

"I have to talk to Kaya about something." Puck knocked on her office door. Before she even had a chance to let him in, he opened the door and walked in.

"Who are you?" She looked him up and down.

"I'm Puck."

"Okay and how can I help you?" She said; clearly annoyed.

"You need to let Rachel back into the production," he demanded.

"Look I'm not sure who you are, but what makes you think you have the right to walk into my office, unannounced, and demand things of me?" She raised her eyebrows waiting for a response.

"Doesn't matter, all I know is if you don't let her back into the production, you will regret it. She's the hardest working person you'll ever meet and she wants it the most. You already know she has the talent." Kaya just watched as this guy she didn't even know stood before her defending Rachel for reasons unknown to her.

"I have made up my mind and I don't want a pregnant teenager in my production. It sends a bad message," she said sternly. Puck rolled his eyes.

"That doesn't even make any sense! The whole play is about sex."

"I've already explained this to Ms. Berry and I won't explain myself again. My decision is final, now I'd like for you to go." She held the door open for him. After a while of hesitation, he finally left her office.

When Puck returned to the hotel later that night, he found Rachel flipping through some papers on her bed.

"Hey babe, what are you doing?" He said greeting her with a kiss to her forehead.

"Looking at the profiles of the families we'll be meeting with tomorrow," she said clearly distracted. She paused for a second to look up at him. "Do you think we're doing the right thing?"

"For our baby, yes, for us, no," he simply stated. She laid her head in her hands and let out a deep sigh.

"I never knew how hard this would be. When Quinn decided to keep her baby, I thought why would she do that to her kid, why would she put this child through a rough life just because she can't bare to give it up, you know I thought it was a selfish thing to do. Now I'm thinking it wasn't so selfish. I would do everything I possibly could if it meant I could keep my baby, but I know it's just not an option. Do you ever feel like maybe it would be harder to give up our child than to raise it?" She blinked back the tears that crept down her cheeks. She rested both of her hands on her stomach and looked down at the child that was still inside her body. Puck put his hand on her face and used his thumb to wipe away her tear. After a minute of silence, Rachel changed the subject. "So what did your mom say when you talked to her?"

"Her and Stacy should be coming this week. She's finally coming around, and while she doesn't really approve of everything that happened, she said she's gonna support me. You don't know how much I needed to hear that."

"Yes I do." She let out a sigh of relief. "After you left to talk to Finn, my dads came to talk to me. Quinn excused herself and they pretty much told me what your mom told you. They don't agree with the choices I've made, but they knew it was wrong to kick me out if I didn't settle for adoption. I told them that was my choice, and they said they'd support me anyway they can."

"I'm really happy that they came around baby. Speaking of Quinn, where is she?" He looked around the room and noticed that she was gone.

"Finn called her and said he wanted to apologize. We assumed you talked to him and what you said got through to him so she went to go meet him. She'll be back soon. I really hope it works out between them. They've been through lots of crap too and I know they're still not over each other," Rachel said hopefully.

"So do I babe, so do I." While Rachel and Puck were at the hotel, Quinn went to meet up with Finn. She walked to the park where she first ran into Puck.

"Hey Quinn," Finn walked up to her with his hands in his pocket.

"Hi Finn," she said with her arms folded across her chest.


	9. Mia

**A/N: Songs in this chapter: Sorry by the Jonas Brothers. Hope you guys enjoy this chapter. It's a pretty short one though!**

"So I wanted to apologize," he started out.

"For what, according to you, I was the one that was wrong. I cheated on you; I'm a slut, you said it yourself." She kept her arms folded at her chest.

"I-I didn't mean that stuff, I just said it because I was angry." He kicked the ground as he spoke.

"So why did you call me here Finn? To apologize, because if so I accept your apology." Quinn started to walk away, but Finn pulled her back.

"Please wait. Just, stay there, I want to do something." Quinn sat down on the bench as Finn pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket.

_Broken hearts and last goodbyes _

_Restless nights by lullabies, helps to make this pain go away_

_I realize I let you down, told you that I'd be around_

_Building up the strength just to say _

"What are you doing?" Quinn cut him short.

"Just let me finish please?"

_I'm sorry for breaking all the promises _

_That I wasn't around to keep_

_You told me this time is the last time _

_That I will ever beg you to stay_

_But you're already on your way_

_Filled with sorrow, filled with pain_

_Knowing that I am to blame for leaving your heart out in the rain_

_And I know you're going to walk away _

_Leave me with the price to pay, before you go I wanted to say _

_That I'm sorry for breaking all the promises _

_That I wasn't around to keep_

_It's on me; this time is the last time _

_I will ever beg you to stay _

_But you're already on your way _

_But you're already on your way_

Quinn was just about to open up her mouth to speak when Finn stopped her.

"Will you forgive me Quinn? I know I haven't been there for you as much as I should have been, but I promise to make it up to you. I just want to be with you again. I understand if that's not possible and…"

"Shh." Quinn laid a finger over Finn's mouth and brought his lips down to hers. He wrapped his arms around her waist to pull her closer to him. She stood up on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck to deepen the kiss.

"I'm sorry Finn." They stopped kissing to look at each other. He noticed that her cheeks were wet and he wiped them dry. She wasn't sure whether they were tears of happiness or relief; most likely a mix of both.

"No, you've already apologized many times before. I was an idiot. I'm not sure what I was thinking when."

"Don't apologize. We both made mistakes but I'm ready to put them all behind me if you are." Quinn smiled at Finn.

"Yes, that's what I want." He hugged her and lifted her off the ground.

While Quinn and Finn were reuniting, Rachel and Puck were coming up with baby names.

"I know we're not gonna be able to name the baby, but if we could, what would you name it?" Rachel asked Puck. They decided to get out for a bit, so they went to the beach. They laid down on their backs in the sand and looked up at the sky. Puck thought about it for a minute before answering.

"I don't know, I guess I never really thought about it," he shrugged. He propped himself up to look at Rachel. "What would you name it?"

"When I wasn't sure if we were keeping it or not, I looked for some names, just in case. I really liked the name Mia," she said shyly.

"Why did you choose Mia?"

Rachel shrugged "I don't know. I was looking at some names and I like what Mia means."

"What does it mean?" He asked.

"It means my wished for child. I know we didn't exactly wish for her, but even when we give her up, she will always be ours." Rachel sat up and looked at Puck. She wasn't sure whether he liked the name or not.

"Then Mia it is. She's our Mia." He kissed Rachel's forehead and grabbed her hand. He put his other hand over her belly. They spent the rest of the night talking about Mia and the future they hoped for her.


	10. People Are Not Toys

**A/N: Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or anything related to Glee. Being the Mark/Lea shipper that I am, I just had to include them somehow, sorry :P Hope you like this chapter. Sadly, the story's almost over. But I am working on another Puckleberry story soon:D As always R&R please. Love you all!**

The next morning Puck and Rachel met with three couples; Andrea and Steven Wilson, Mark and Lea Watson, and Henry and Nathan Lucas. After three long interviews, they decided on Henry and Nathan. The other couples were great too; Rachel was just a little bit biased due to the fact that she grew up with two gay dads.

"Do you think Mia will grow up happy with Henry and Nathan?" Puck asked Rachel as they sat down to dinner a few days later. They decided to meet Stacy and Kathleen at a restaurant in downtown Chicago. Rachel bit her nails before answering.

"I do. This might just be my bias talking here, but I think we picked the perfect couple. Mia will be spoiled in all the fine arts, as was her mother." Rachel looked down and her belly and laid a hand on it. Puck held his hand out across the table, which led Rachel to hold hers out and intertwine their fingers. He held their entangled hands up to his lips and pressed a kiss to the back of her hand.

"She'll always be ours, you know that right?" He could tell that Rachel was convincing herself of that less and less as the due date came closer.

"I know, but in a way it won't feel like it. She'll be living with other people, people who she'll call her parents, and I'll never see her again." Rachel hung her head low.

"You could've opted for open adoption. They would've agreed to it." Rachel quickly shook her head no.

"No, I can't do that. It's best to cut off all ties with her. I can't see pictures of her being raised by someone else, or read letters about how she took her first steps or that her first performance…" Rachel couldn't finish her statement due to the tears forming in her eyes. Puck stood up and walked over to Rachel and threw his arms around her.

"Rach, I understand. But don't you think it will hurt just as bad knowing she's out there and not ever seeing what she looks like or knowing how she's doing?" As Rachel was about to answer, Stacy and Kathleen walked through the door.

"Noahie!" Stacy ran up to Puck and hugged his leg.

"Hey kiddo." He patted her back.

"Hi Rachel." Rachel picked Stacy up and put her on her lap. Stacy put her hand on Rachel's stomach. "How's my little niece doing?" She looked up at Rachel.

"Mia's doing just fine, sweetie." Stacy put her arms around Rachel's neck and squeezed her into a hug.

"How's my big sister doing?" Stacy snuggled closer to Rachel. Rachel looked surprised. _Does she mean me? _

"Why did you just call me your big sister, not that I don't like it or anything."

"Because you and Puck are going to be married one day, at least that's what everybody says." Kathleen, Puck, and Rachel all stayed quiet until Stacy changed the subject.

"I think Mia is a cute name!" she said as she released Rachel.

"I think so too." Puck smiled at his sister.

"When do we get to see her? When is she coming out?"

"She's actually due any day now." Rachel formed a little smile.

"When do we get to take her home?" Stacy asked innocently.

"Stace, that's probably not the best question to ask right now," Puck advised. Rachel bit her lip.

"No, it's okay. Stacy, we aren't bringing Mia home," Rachel said cautiously. While Rachel was explaining the adoption to Stacy, Kathleen pulled her son aside.

"How's she handling the adoption?"

"It's pretty hard on her. She doesn't want open adoption, but a closed adoption is just as hard. Either way it'll be rough on her."

"And how are you dealing with this?" Puck shrugged.

"As best as I can I guess."

"Have you told her what you want?" Kathleen paused. "What do you want exactly?"

"I don't want to give her up, but we really don't have any other choice." He sat down in the nearest chair.

"Has she considered keeping the baby?" Kathleen joined her son.

"That's… not an option as far as she's concerned Mom. Can we please, can we just drop it?" He asked in the nicest way possible.

"I'm sorry honey." Kathleen walked over to Puck and put her hand on his shoulder. "I just want you to be happy too. You do have a say in this and I know you're trying to make this as easy on her as possible, but I don't think you should give in if it's not your choice." Puck stayed quiet until Kathleen walked back over to Rachel and Stacy. Puck followed her.

"Rachy says you're not keeping Mia. Why not?" She asked her brother as he came back to the table.

"We can't Stacy. It's hard to explain, you're too young to understand." He said simply.

"Well I don't get why you want to give your baby away. What if mommy gave one of us away? People are not toys Noah; we don't just give them away when we're done with them." She pouted. Kathleen saw the look on both Rachel and Puck's faces and knew they were caught by surprise.

"C'mon honey, let's go get settled into our hotel room." She grabbed Stacy's hand as they started walking out the door.

"But I want to hear what Puck was going to say," she whined.

"Now's not the time, I'll explain to you when we get settled in." And just like that they were out the door. Once they were gone, Rachel and Puck took a few moments to digest Stacy's words.

"For a 10 year old, she sure is smart." Rachel said awkwardly.

"She's a very mature kid."

"Do you think it's true? Do you think we're just handing our child away like some sort of toy?" Puck didn't know how to answer at first.

"No I don't. Do I want to give our daughter away to another family? Of course not, who does? But we have to. Unless you think we could raise her." Puck knew that wasn't an option as far as Rachel was concerned, but he'd do anything to keep his baby. He already lost one child, he wasn't about to lose another one. Rachel hesitated before answering.

"You don't even have a job…"

"But I could get one. As soon as we get back to Lima I will look for a job."

"I…don't know." Rachel was still apprehensive. "I have to think about it."

"Take as long as you want. I know we can do this. We'd be great parents." Puck stood up and grabbed Rachel's hand. They walked out of the restaurant hand-in-hand.

"So um, where do you think Stacy's been getting her information?" Puck looked confused, so Rachel reworded her question. "You know, about us, getting married."

"Oh." He paused. "I don't know. Probably Mom no doubt. Sorry if it seemed like I freaked out about it back there. It's not that I wouldn't want to marry you, I love you, but…" 

"Shh," Rachel laughed. "I get it, we're too young. You don't have to justify yourself to me." Puck breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, because after all I'm a sex shark, if I stop moving, I die." Rachel jokingly slapped his arm.

"Well mister sex shark, if I ever find you in anybody else's ocean, we will have a problem." She pretended to stalk away. He ran up behind her and put his arms around her waist, lifting her up from the ground.

"Don't worry; the only ocean I'd want to live in is yours." He thought about that for a moment. "Wait that sounded wrong."

"Yeah, I was just gonna say." They both laughed. He put his arms around her and pulled her into a sideways hug as they headed back to their hotel.

"So you still in for breakfast with Finn and Quinn tomorrow?" Puck asked.

"Breakfast with my boyfriend and my two best friends, wouldn't miss it for the anything."


	11. The Summer of A Lifetime

**A/N: Have I mentioned I'm terribly sorry for the delay! I hope this chapter was worth the wait! Sadly, it's the last one. I'm going to be working on my other fanfics for a while, but that does NOT mean I'm not writing more Puckleberry fics. They're my favorite, I'll always write about them. Don't forget to R & R. I hope you liked the story!**

"Hey guys." Puck walked into the restaurant early that afternoon to meet with Finn and Quinn.

"Hey," they said simultaneously. Finn shook Puck's hand and Quinn gave him a quick hug.

"Where's Rachel?" They asked, yet again in unison. Puck shrugged.

"She said she'd meet me here. I thought she'd be here by now." He looked around the restaurant and saw no sign of her. Just as he was about to sit down, his phone went off. He rummaged through his pocket and flipped the phone open and saw he received a text from Rachel's number.

_Rachel's at the hospital, we're pretty sure she's giving birth. Get here as soon as you can. _

_But she's not due for another month or two, he though. _It took him a few seconds to process what he actually read. He must have looked pretty shocked because Finn and Quinn noticed his expression.

"Are you okay man? Is it Rachel? What'd she say?" were some of the questions being thrown at him.

"Rachel, she's having the baby," he said, distracted. Quinn and Finn instantly shot up out of their seats, but it seemed that Puck was frozen in his. Quinn shook him gently.

"Puck, we've got to go to the hospital. Your girlfriend's in labor." Finn already sprinted to the door before the realization hit Puck and he sprang out of his chair. Once they all piled into the car, it took them less than 20 minutes to get over to the hospital.

"Hi, how may I help you?" The receptionist asked, keeping her eyes on the computer screen in front of her.

"We're looking for Rachel Berry," Puck huffed. He was out of breath from running into the hospital.

"She's in delivery room 615 right now," the fairly plump lady said calmly. Just as Puck, Finn, and Quinn were about to rush back, she put a hand out signaling them to come back.

"Sorry, only two people are allowed in the room," she said uncaringly.

"I'm the father of her baby," Puck announced.

"You can go in." She turned her attention back to the computer. Puck looked from Quinn to Finn, then back to Quinn. He didn't want to make the choice for Rachel; they were both her friends.

"You go, I'm sure Rachel would want her best friend in there with her." Finn smiled at Quinn and sat down in the lobby next to Rachel's dads. She gave him a quick kiss before running to Rachel's room with Puck. When they got in the room, both Puck and Quinn immediately rushed to Rachel's side. They each grabbed one of her hands and looked on with different expressions contorted on their faces. Quinn's was more of an encouraging expression while Puck had a mixture of emotions. He was happy that his kid was finally going to be born, but worried at the same time because Rachel wasn't supposed to be giving birth yet.

_What if something's wrong with the baby? I can't handle losing another child. Crap, what if something happens to Rachel? I can't handle losing her either. _

"Noah!" Rachel yelled. He snapped out of the daze he didn't even realize he was in when he felt his hand being gripped harder than it should have.

"Ow, ow!" He tried to pull his hand away from Rachel's for a minute, but she only gripped it tighter.

"You think that hurts? Try giving birth!" she grunted at him. He didn't even take offense to any of the things she was screaming at him because he knew she didn't mean them. He wanted this to be over with just as much as she did because he hated seeing her in any kind of pain. Finally, after being in labor for quite some time, their baby girl was finally here. While the nurses cleaned her off, Puck kissed Rachel's sweat-beaded forehead.

"I'm so proud of you." Quinn leaned down to whisper in her ear. She lightly squeezed both of their hands and smiled at them. Once Mia was all cleaned off, they wrapped her in a pink cotton blanket and gently laid her in Rachel's arms. Rachel looked up at Puck and noticed that, for the first time since they were dating, he was actually crying. She put her spare hand up to his cheek and stroked it softly. After a few minutes, the nurses and doctors cleared out of the room, taking Mia with them. As soon as they left, Rachel's eyelids slowly inched shut. Quinn and Puck took a walk to the nursery to see Mia.

"She's beautiful." Quinn smiled at Puck.

"Yeah, she looks just like her mother." Puck put his hand against the glass window. Puck looked over at Quinn and could tell that she was hurting.

"Did you want to hold her?" He asked.

"Me? No, it's okay, really. I don't know if Rachel would be okay with that." She shook her head.

"She's the one that suggested it." Quinn looked to Puck for an explanation. "Quinn, Rachel trusts you. You're her best friend and she knows how hard it was for you to lose your baby." Quinn smiled to herself. She never thought in a million years that she and Rachel would be best friends or that Rachel would want her to hold her firstborn child.

"I'd love to hold her." Quinn nodded. Before Quinn had her chance to hold Mia, the nurses brought her back into Rachel's hospital room. When Quinn and Puck got there, Finn was standing off to the side. Quinn rushed over to his side, wrapping an arm around his waist. They all watched as Rachel held her baby girl.

"Rach, I have to tell you something," said Puck as he sat down next to the bed.

"What is it? Is Mia okay?" She held Mia tighter to her body.

"Her adoptive parents called this morning. They backed out." He watched her cautiously.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Rachel said with panic apparent in her voice.

"We could…keep her," Puck said with hope. Rachel immediately shook her head.

"No, we can't."

"Why not? We could do this Rach, we could raise her. I have a job and we have the support system." He looked up at Quinn and Finn who both nodded their heads in approval.

"Rachel, we've got your back," chimed Finn.

"Yeah if this is what you want, what you need to do, then you have our full support. We'll do anything to help you guys out," Quinn reiterated. Rachel looked at Finn and Quinn, then back to Puck.

"What if we're terrible parents?" Puck grabbed Rachel's spare hand.

"We're going to make mistakes, and there will be times when we feel like we could've done better, but we're always going to do what's best for our daughter. We're going to love her and give her everything she needs to be successful in life, and that's what's going to make us good parents." Rachel gave Puck's hand a gentle squeeze before thinking it over.

"Would you be the godparents?" Rachel turned her head towards Finn and Quinn.

"Us?" They both said in surprise.

"Who else would I ask?" Rachel said; like it was obvious.

"I-I don't know," Quinn said happily, "I'd love to be her godmother." Quinn smiled wide at that thought. She slowly walked over to Rachel's bedside. Quinn held out her hands and gently lifted Mia from Rachel's grip. She slowly rocked Mia back and forth in her arms.

"Hi baby, hello." It was safe to say that Quinn was off in her own world with Mia. Out of nowhere she let a few tears stream down her face.

"You okay Quinn?" Finn walked over to his girlfriend and held her waist.

"I'm fine, really I just… it reminds me of Jocelyn, that's all." Quinn shrugged. Suddenly the room became quiet at the mention of Quinn and Puck's daughter's name.

"I'm really sorry Quinn." Finn pulled her closer to him. Quinn shook her head.

"No, don't be sorry. This isn't about me; this is about Puck and Rachel's daughter. She's so beautiful isn't she?" Quinn looked down at Mia. Finn nodded.

"She really is." After a few minutes, Rachel's dads came in and spent some time with their daughter and newborn granddaughter. Just then a nurse walked into Rachel's room.

"Alright guys, let's let the new mother get herself some rest," the nurse said kindly. Quinn laid Mia in Puck's hands before her and Finn quietly slipped out of the room. Rachel's dads kissed her forehead before walking out themselves. Just as Puck was about to leave, he felt Rachel's hand tug at his arm.

"Stay here please?" Puck nodded and took a seat in the chair next to the bed. He looked over at Rachel and noticed that she fell asleep pretty quickly. He averted his attention back to his daughter.

"You're going to have such a good life. I'm going to make sure of it and so is your mommy." He kissed Mia's forehead and cradled her in his arms. He quietly hummed one of his favorite songs. He found her dozing off, so he started to sing to her.

_Somewhere over the rainbow_

_Way up high, _

_There's a land that I heard of _

_Once in a lullaby_

_Somewhere over the rainbow, _

_Skies are blue, _

_And the dreams that you dare to dream_

_Really do come true. _

_Someday I'll wish upon a star_

_And wake up where the clouds are far _

_Behind me _

_Where troubles melt like lemon drops _

_Away above the chimney tops _

_That's where you'll find me _

_Somewhere over the rainbow_

_Bluebirds fly. _

_Birds fly over the rainbow _

_Why then, oh why can't I? _

_If happy little bluebirds fly _

_Beyond the rainbow _

_Why, oh why can't I? _

"That was beautiful babe." Puck looked over and saw that Rachel was awake.

"Did I wake you?" He asked, reaching out to grab her hand.

"No," she smiled, taking his hand.

"It was really nice of you to ask Quinn and Finn to be the godparents."

"It was an obvious choice." She paused for a few minutes before asking him a question. "Do you think we're making the right decision keeping Mia?" She asked him nervously.

"Of course I do. She's going to be the most loved baby in the whole world." Rachel reached up to cup his cheek before softly kissing his lips. He eagerly returned the kiss.

"I love you Noah."

"I love you too, Rach." He looked down at his daughter again and grinned. "I have my two girls right here and I couldn't be happier." Rachel leaned her head against his shoulder as he wrapped his available arm around her shoulder. _Maybe things will work out after all, he thought. I have my daughter and Rachel; I have my best friends back, my family's support, that's all I can ask for. This was one of, if not, the best summer of my life. It really was the summer of a lifetime. _


End file.
